1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to an electrophotographic photoreceptor, occasionally referred to as a photoreceptor, to be used in an electrophotographic image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, a laser beam printer and a facsimile machine, and a manufacturing method thereof, and in more detailed, relates to removal of coated layer adhered to an unnecessary area of the photoreceptor.
2. Related Art
The electrophotographic photoreceptor is usually manufactured by immersing a cylindrical electroconductive support into a coating liquid such as a photosensitive layer coating liquid, an intermediate layer coating liquid and a surface protective layer coating liquid to form a coating layer. In such the case, the coating layer is entirely formed on the surface of the cylindrical electroconductive support since the support is immersed in the coating liquid. When the photoreceptor drum entirely coated with the layer is installed in an electrophotographic apparatus, the coated layer is occasionally peeled off by contacting to parts such as a roller to be touched to a developing device, and the photoreceptor drum cannot be utilized as the contacting point for grounding. Consequently, it is preferable to remove the coated layer adhered at the both end portions of the photoreceptor drum.
As the method for removing the coated layer, methods have been known such as the method of that the end area of the photoreceptor drum is immersed in an solvent and vibrated by ultrasonic wave described in Japanese Patent Publication Open to Public Inspection, hereinafter referred to as Japanese Patent O.P.I. Publication, No. 63-311357, the method of that the coated layer is scoured off by a brush described in Japanese Patent O.P.I. Publication Nos. 3-60782, 4-141663, 5-142789, 10-207084, 11-184100 and 11-194509, and the method employing a tape. The following methods have been known, for example, the method of that a tape composed of heat-bonded type nonwoven fabric is successively let out and then a solvent is supplied to the tape, and the tape is contacted to the photoreceptor drum to remove the photosensitive layer described in Japanese Patent O.P.I. Publication No. 4-65376, the method of that a tape impregnated with a solvent is let out and the tape is contacted to the photoreceptor drum to remove the coated layer, and the method using a nonwoven fabric having uneven surface on one side described in Japanese Patent O.P.I. Publication No. 9-281725.
In any method, however, problems occur such as that the coated layer near the end portion of the photoreceptor where the coated layer is removed tends to be peeled off, and the toner is accumulated at the end portion of the photoreceptor so as to cause insufficient cleaning and contamination of interior of the apparatus by the toner. As a result of that the durability of the photoreceptor drum and the cleaning member is extremely degraded. Consequently, it is demanded that the shape of the coated layer is developed which does not cause such the problems.